Loose Ends
by Emmalyn
Summary: A look at what happened to Roxanne, Megamind, and Minion after the battle with Tighten but before the museum dance scene at the end of the film. MM/RR fluff with a sprinkle of drama.
1. Chapter 1: Firsts

**Author's Note: **

Warning: First attempt at fanfic; feel free to critique in the comments! I've been watching/commenting on this community (both on LJ and FFnet) since I first saw Megamind in theaters way back in November, but I haven't posted anything original of my own until now. Let me know what you think! And thanks for reading. :)

(P.S. This fic is cross-posted in the LJ community, so for anyone who's read it over there, there's no new info here...yet.)

* * *

"Sir!"

"Gah!" Megamind jumped in his chair, barely managing to turn his shriek of surprise into a slightly more dignified shout.

Minion poked his head around the corner, unfazed. His backup robot suit creaked as he leaned in. It hadn't been oiled in a while. "Sir, I asked what you wanted for dinner. Should I make omelets or macaroni and cheese?"

"I don't care, Minion!" Megamind answered irritably. "Can't you see I'm busy working on something?" He clapped the book shut and waved it around in the air. Ink-smudged blue fingers further proved his point.

Minion gave a long-suffering sigh. "But sir, you have to eat—"

"Yes, yes, I will, Minion, but don't interrupt me now! Genius cannot be rushed!" The pen in Megamind's other hand tapped his knee impatiently.

"Of course, sir," the robot-bodied fish muttered, secretly rolling his eyes. In other words, his boss was in the middle of one of his pet projects, and likely would forget to eat for another six hours. He'd have to just whip something up and shove it into Megamind's lap when it was finished.

When Minion had finally clanked his way out of the room, Megamind spun his chair back around to face his cluttered desk. He slowly opened the journal to the page he had been mindlessly working on, and was embarrassed to see a page full of smiley faces, hearts, and—worst of all—a few letters of what he was afraid might be the words "Megamind Ritchi." He winced and scribbled furiously over that last bit.

It had only been a few weeks since the Titan Incident, and Roxanne was finally able to speak to him again. Not that she had been avoiding him or anything, but she'd been mobbed by nosy reporters asking for interviews (hah! the irony!) and doctors monitoring her every move in case she developed signs of post-traumatic stress disorder. They didn't understand how very well adapted she was to stress of the "super" kind. A few visits with a therapist and a couple of aspirin had fixed her right up, or else that was how it had seemed to the former supervillains.

He, on the other hand, stayed in the hospital for ten days recuperating from numerous broken ribs and a minor concussion (which would have been more severe if his large cranium weren't so thick). Throughout that nerve-racking experience, during which he had threatened nearly every doctor on staff with horrible torture if they poked or prodded him one more time, he had worried about Roxanne constantly. Where was she? Why hadn't she contacted him? Had she sustained lasting injuries? Minion had been unable to find these things out for him, and had apologized profusely, but this fact didn't deter Megamind. He was nothing if not persistent.

In the end he had returned home, ribs and head snugly bandaged, to find a note taped near the not-so-secret entrance to his lair. It read, simply, "Call me when you get this. –Roxanne." A phone number was written at the bottom in Roxanne's neat, loopy handwriting. Megamind snatched the note off the wall, glancing shiftily back and forth to make sure no one was watching, and ducked through the hologram wall. A pleasant darkness enveloped him once he stepped inside the warehouse. He absently petted a few the brain-bots that swarmed around him as he made a beeline for his desk. He needed to call Roxanne.

Sadly, although the lair was equipped with technology far more advanced than most humans could ever dream of, Megamind didn't own a phone. Minion had returned the real Bernard's cell phone when Megamind had been admitted into the hospital and the police had visited the lair to interrogate the fish about their future plans. Megamind made a mental note to remind Minion not to answer the door when he wasn't there. That might keep him from giving away useful items to anyone who asked.

Frowning at Roxanne's neat script, Megamind flopped dramatically into his chair. He considered stealing a cell phone from a local store, but quickly discarded the idea. Roxanne would disapprove. He was supposed to be a hero now, a changed man! Or, at least, a chang_ing_ one.

He slumped in his magnificent, black, quite villainous chair. Megamind, the hero? The thought was laughable. Who was he kidding? Donning a fur-collared white cape didn't automatically transform him into a hero. Not even an infusion of Metro Man's DNA could do that. A cloud of depression settled over him.

One of the brain-bots, perhaps sensing its master's change in mood or perhaps just wanting attention, floated down to Megamind's lap. He absently stroked its glass dome, blue plasma arcing to warm his fingertips. It barked and clanked its jaw in a robotic expression of happiness. Megamind glanced down at it, finally remembering the note that was now crushed in his free hand.

Oh, right. The phone problem. He supposed he would have to deal with it sooner or later.

Shooing the brain-bot off his lap, Megamind abruptly leapt to his feet. "Minion!" he shouted, his voice echoing in the bare chamber. "I'm home!"

Metallic footsteps heralded Minion's entrance, and the fish grinned as he swept his master up in his robotic arms. "It's great to see you again, sir! How are you feeling?"

"I've been better," Megamind wheezed, his injured ribs protesting the hug.

Minion noticed the pained look and quickly set Megamind down. "Sorry about that, I just got carried away," he said sheepishly.

"I noticed," Megamind drawled. "But there's no time for that now. I am on a _mission_!" He punctuated the word by punching his fist in the air theatrically. The movement pulled on the bandages, but Megamind didn't notice.

Minion looked a little dubious. "A mission, sir?" He might have said more, but was silenced by a repressive glare from his master.

"Yes, Minion, that's what I said, a mission. We need to procure…a cell phone!" Opening his hand with an expressive flourish, Megamind presented Minion with the crumpled-up note.

"What does a tissue have to do with the plan?" Minion asked, still confused.

Megamind huffed in annoyance. "No, no, it's a note." He quickly smoothed out the scrap of paper and held it out to Minion again. "See?"

"Ah, okay, that does make more sense," the fish said, smiling in acknowledgment. "So you want to call Miss Ritchi to see how she's doing?"

To his surprise, Megamind felt his face growing warm. "Yes, that would be the logical assumption, wouldn't it? Now let's get going!"

He stalked off to the garage without looking back. Minion followed, still grinning toothily.

* * *

Roxanne ran her hand through her short-cropped hair for the fifth time in as many minutes. It was early evening, and she'd just gotten home from a long first day back at work. She'd been mobbed by concerned and curious co-workers from the first moment; even her boss had asked if Roxanne was _sure_ she was alright to work again. He'd only allowed her to stay when the young reporter had presented him with not one, but _three_ doctor's notes proclaiming her to be healthy and stable.

The concern had been flattering at first, but Roxanne quickly grew frustrated when even the intern who made copies for her had stopped and asked her how she was feeling. She was afraid she'd acted a little too harshly toward him near the end of the day, snapping "I'm fine!" in response to his delicately-phrased inquiry. She'd apologized, but finally left early to preserve her sanity.

Back in her apartment, she flopped onto her big leather couch and kicked off her flats. Long day notwithstanding, it was good to be back at work again. She hadn't taken more than a few days of vacation at once in years. Even though she'd probably needed it, ten days away from the office had been enough to drive her crazy.

Roxanne scanned the newspaper in her hands without really reading the words. It was getting too dark to read, anyway. The late afternoon sun was just starting to dip below the horizon, casting purple shadows through her tall windows. She stood up to flip on a lamp and jumped when she felt something brush against the top of her head. It was one of the hanging cards that made up the collage of clues she'd collected while researching Titan with Bernard—or rather, Megamind.

A little rush of an emotion that felt uncomfortably like loneliness washed through her. It had only been a couple of weeks, but she hadn't exactly had time for visitors; the only human contact she'd had was her doctors' treatments and her mother's worried phone calls. Roxanne snatched the offending card off its clip and stared at it. It wasn't one of hers; this one had little scribbles all over it and featured a sketch of a bizarrely large-headed blue figure with a gun in one hand and a goofy grin on its face. Another figure (this one with watermelon-sized biceps and a T on its chest) was lying on the ground with Xs drawn in for its eyes.

Roxanne couldn't suppress a little amused smile. She rolled her eyes at her past self. How could she not have seen the similarities between Megamind and the "new and improved" Bernard before? In retrospect, it was so obvious.

Clipping the card back onto its string, Roxanne glanced toward the phone. She'd left a note at Megamind's formerly-evil lair before work that morning; was he going to call? Maybe she'd have to pay him a visit. If she didn't hear from him in the next day or two, she'd drive over. But she didn't want to appear over-eager, so instead she went to her bedroom to slip into some comfortable loungewear and settled down to read.

* * *

Megamind self-consciously twitched the white cape more firmly around himself. Perhaps wearing full hero regalia to a cell phone store was not the most well-thought-out plan. People were probably staring. No, scratch that, people were _definitely_ staring. And not in the flatteringly fearful way that he was used to. He ducked his head to seem less conspicuous.

The young woman who was helping him typed quickly into her computer terminal. "Hmm, it looks like you don't have an account with us yet, sir," she said politely. She glanced up at him. "Would you like to start one?"

Megamind was busy watching Minion play with the sample cell phones around the perimeter of the store. His fishy friend was currently poking madly at a tiny keyboard, his robotic fingers mashing about a third of the keys at with each poke. Megamind thought he heard some muffled curses.

"Sir?" the cashier prompted.

"Oh, uh, yes, sure, whatever," Megamind muttered.

The woman typed a few more words. "Alright, then, what services would you like with your plan?"

"Talking," he replied distractedly, still fidgeting with his cape.

She hid a smile. "Of course. And what about texting or Internet services?"

"Ah, yes! Definitely texting!" Megamind said, eyes suddenly wide and attentive. Roxanne had always preferred to text during work hours. Or at least she'd preferred to text _Bernard _during work hours. His shoulders drooped a little at that unpleasant thought.

After paying the cashier, he snatched the new phone off the counter and dragged Minion out of the store, away from the curious townspeople.

* * *

Roxanne's phone jangled loudly, jolting her awake. She glanced at the clock in confusion, wondering when she'd fallen asleep, and realized that she'd dozed for about an hour. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, she picked up the phone. "Hello?"

A familiar voice greeted her. "Ollo?"

"Who is this?" Roxanne asked, pretending not to know.

"It's me, Megamind," came the indignant answer. Was he holding the phone a foot away from his face?

Roxanne smirked. "I guess that means you got my note?"

"Of course," There was a pause. "So, how are you doing?" Megamind asked, a little too casually.

"I've…been better," she admitted. "Physically, I'm good, but work today was stressful."

"Oh?" Megamind prompted. Roxanne could tell he was trying to sound unconcerned, but his curiosity was getting the better of him.

"Yeah," she said, reclining on the couch. "My coworkers all seem to think that I don't know how to take care of myself."

"Ah. Well, I'm glad to hear that you're doing…well." Another pause, and a couple of hissed whispers in the background. "And Minion says hello," he continued darkly, probably glaring at the fish for interrupting him.

Roxanne almost laughed at how awkward he sounded, but held it back. She figured she'd better get to the point. Taking a deep breath, she said, "Do you want to get coffee sometime?"

"Yes! Definitely!" Megamind replied quickly, excitement and—was that relief?—evident in his voice. "What time would be best for you?"

"Well, since today's Thursday, and I have work again tomorrow, how about Saturday morning? Say around eleven?" Roxanne had promised herself that she was going to sleep in at least one day this week. "There's a coffee shop around the corner from my place, if you want to meet me here."

"Sounds great!" said Megamind.

"See you then." Roxanne was still smiling a little as she hit the "end" button on her phone. Strangely, she wasn't feeling so down about work anymore.

* * *

"Minion! This is fantastic!" Megamind spun his chair around, barely resisting the urge to burst out in evil laughter. That would slightly undermine his new heroic image. "Roxanne wants to hang around with me!"

Minion's voice echoed from the next room. "I believe the term is 'hang out,' sir. But that's great news!"

Megamind ignored the first comment. He felt like he could conquer the world, or maybe invent a new missile-launcher—no, that wouldn't be very heroic either. Maybe a new kind of plasma shield. For…protecting things. He tossed his new phone over his shoulder onto the desk, where a brain-bot snatched it up with a metallic yip. "We're going for coffee on Saturday," Megamind continued happily, kicking his desk to spin the chair around again.

"That sounds like fun." Minion shook flour off his robotic hands as he stepped into the room. "By the way, I'm making chocolate-chip pancakes for dinner. Your favorite."

His boss tilted his head back over the side of the still-spinning chair. "Fantastic!" he exclaimed.

"Have you decided what you're going to wear for your date, sir?" Minion asked. He wasn't sure how well the black and blue bodysuit (let alone the white cape) would go over in a coffee shop.

Megamind sat up too quickly, the heel of his boot hitting the desk with a metallic clang. "What do you mean, Minion?"

The fish hemmed and hawed. "Well, you know, your regular spikes-and-leather outfit might be a bit..._intimidating_ for everyday wear."

The green eyes widened, remembering the cell phone store. "Of course, Minion, you're right! How could I have overlooked that? Ugh, I'm so unprepared. Whatever would Roxanne think of me now?" Megamind drooped woefully back into his chair.

Minion crossed his arms. "May I suggest going shopping, sir? I'm sure we could find a few websites to help us decide what to buy." And while they were at it, he could maybe sneak a few upgrades to his gorilla suit into their shopping cart. He could use a mixing attachment.

"Are you kidding? A robotic fish and a reforming supervillain, just prancing up to the mall?" Megamind raised a sardonic eyebrow. "Have you forgotten that we tried to blow it up last year?"

"Well, no," Minion admitted. It hadn't been one of their proudest moments. They'd nearly set a world record for "shortest time to superhero intervention." "But you're a changed man now, sir. Maybe they'd let us in."

"Perhaps," Megamind said, unconvinced. "Well, the worst they can do to us is throw us back in jail, I suppose."

"Which wouldn't be so bad." Minion flapped his fins and grinned. "It's not like that was ever a problem before."

"You have a point. Plus we could wear the watches just in case." A crafty gleam lit Megamind's eyes. "Might need to make some adjustments to...Ah! I only have fifty-two hours to plan everything." He hopped to his feet, melancholy forgotten. "Better get started. Brain-bots! Come to Daddy!" Megamind snapped his fingers. "Mood music, Minion!"

Electric guitar chords and the zapping barks of brain-bots echoed throughout the lair as they worked late into the night.

* * *

Thanks again for reading; any feedback would be greatly appreciated! :)


	2. Chapter 2: Preparation

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Megamind (or Minion, or Roxanne); I'm just using them for my nefarious purposes.

* * *

The morning sun filtered through the few high windows in the lair's main room. Dust motes and brain-bots drifted about through patches of light. Minion's robotic body lay on the floor in the middle of the lab, while Megamind was curled up a few feet away, his rolled-up cloak serving as a pillow.

The brain-bots who weren't off cleaning up the city swarmed about the duo. They had been quieter than usual that morning to let Daddy sleep, but they had their limits when it came to patience. "BOWM!" one of the bots shouted near Megamind's right ear. It was clear that Daddy wasn't going to wake up and play without some help. When there was no response, it reached out a spiked claw and tapped Daddy's shoulder.

Megamind snapped awake, knocking his head on the metal underside of the bot. "Yipe! Ouch! Bad brain-bot!" he scolded, rubbing his sore forehead and frowning ferociously. The brain-bot fled to join its siblings in the next room.

Minion awoke more gracefully, his castle rising up into his fish-bowl head. He wiggled out of it and gave his boss a wide grin. "Good morning, sir! Sleep well?" Minion didn't really expect an answer, which was just as well because he didn't receive one.

Muttering darkly about brain-bots and trash compactors, Megamind got up stiffly and began puttering around the lab. "Where did we leave off, Minion?" he asked.

"I believe we were discussing the relative merits of polo shirts, sir," Minion replied. "I still think they look classy."

"For the last time, Minion, I don't want to look like I'm going to a golf...match!" Megamind waved a hand in the air as he paced. "I want to actually look _normal_."

Minion raised a fishy eyebrow but said nothing.

Megamind sighed heavily. "I know, I know. This"—he gestured to himself—"doesn't exactly scream 'normal.' But it's about the _illusion_."

"I think you look just fine, sir. You're worrying too much." Minion smiled reassuringly. "Ms Ritchi _knows_ you. She's seen you at your best and your worst."

"That's what I'm afraid of."

"But she still likes you," Minion continued.

"I'm not so sure of that," Megamind said morosely. "She could be asking me out to tell me that she still hates me. Or that she never wants to see me again."

"That doesn't even make any sense!" Minion frowned.

Megamind glared at his friend. "You always say that."

"Only when it's true, sir," Minion retorted. And Megamind had always been at his most illogical when it came to the pretty reporter. "Now let's go get you some new clothes to wear on your date with Ms. Ritchi."

* * *

"This is humiliating," Megamind grumbled as Minion gently set him on his feet in the mall's parking lot.

"Sorry, sir, but you're the one who said we had to take the back-up hovercycle while the other vehicles are broken." Minion shrugged apologetically.

"I know, I know." The blue-skinned alien sighed. "I don't want to talk about it. I just hope no one saw you carrying me like a child." He glanced around furtively. They'd decided not to wear the hologram watches so that Megamind could find clothes that fit, but as a result they were much more conspicuous.

Minion wisely decided not to mention the news van parked nearby. They'd probably see pictures of themselves in tomorrow's paper, but it wasn't like they weren't used to bad press. At least it wasn't Roxanne's news station.

Two hours later, Minion was balancing half a dozen shopping bags in his gorilla-sized arms. Megamind was trudging along beside him, his eyes glazed over from exhaustion. He was still wearing his old leathers. Nothing Minion said would convince him to change before the actual date.

"Tell me, Minion," Megamind said irritably, "whatever possessed those store owners to put sharp metal pins inside _every shirt_? Aren't other humans expected to try them on? Does that seem like a logical course of action to you?"

"No, sir," Minion answered for the hundredth time. Megamind had been complaining since the first pinprick in the first dress shirt. He'd tried on fifty before finding colors that he liked: navy blue and black. What a surprise. "It's quite illogical."

Megamind dragged his feet pathetically. "And who made the blueprints for that structure? They didn't plan for escape from drooling, germ-infested infants or swarms of giggling teenagers..."

"Yes, sir, it's terrible." Minion was focusing on loading their packages on the already-precariously-balanced hovercycle. He knew that his boss wouldn't notice the rote responses. Nothing could sway Megamind during one of his monologues.

"At least we weren't forcibly removed," Megamind said thoughtfully. "And I think I looked rather dashing even without the spikes and gauntlets."

"Certainly, sir." Minion slipped his "Big & Tall" bag into the pile. He'd picked out a nice shirt for himself while Megamind had been preoccupied by his appearance in one of the dressing room mirrors. Minion was hoping to show it off at their next public function.

"I'll miss those gloves, though." Megamind sighed theatrically as Minion picked him up again and settled him on one robotic arm. A flip of a switch, and the hovercycle zoomed off toward home.

* * *

Roxanne endured two long and restless nights in a row. When her alarm finally sounded at 9am on Saturday morning, her sheets were tangled around her legs and both pillows had been tossed to the floor. She yawned, irritably slapped the alarm, and then stumbled out of bed to turn on the shower.

A couple of stubbed toes later, she hauled herself to the fogged mirror. Her eyes were a little bloodshot, but—were those mascara smudges, or dark circles?—she was used to applying a lot of makeup in the mornings. Only this time it was for a date instead of the camera. Roxanne frowned a little at the word. Was that what this was? A date? Why did that idea seem so strange? It wasn't like she hadn't been out with Megamind before, albeit when he was in disguise. Maybe that was why the situation felt so awkward. Or maybe it was because she was actually looking forward to the meeting.

She shooed away her butterflies with a deep breath. She was probably just stressed. Her therapist had assured her that returning to work might be difficult, but he hadn't had any advice to offer regarding her love life. Roxanne guessed that inter-species dating hadn't been a course topic in psychiatry school. She almost giggled at the idea.

After debating for nearly half an hour about whether or not to wear jeans to the coffee shop, Roxanne finally picked a skirt-and-top combo that she'd worn on a date with Bernard—no, with Megamind, she corrected herself. She didn't want to look too carefully into the implications of that fashion choice. Or the sense of expectation that bubbled up like laughter in her chest.

Roxanne was possibly a little clumsier than usual as she grabbed her coat and purse on her way out, but luckily no one was there to see.

* * *

"Ouch!" Megamind flinched as one of the brain-bots jabbed him in his still-healing ribs. "Don't poke Daddy!" The robot quickly withdrew its metal claw, barking an apology.

Minion tilted his head to one side. "I'm not sure the brain-bots were equipped to handle buttons, sir," he commented. The long-sleeved black dress shirt and khakis looked nice, but they were a little more complicated than his old two-piece villain suits.

"Nonsense, Minion," Megamind replied haughtily. He presented an unbuttoned sleeve to the nearest bot. "If they can handle eyeliner, they can surely handle little plastic things in holes." He frowned when the bot fiddled with the button instead of fastening it. "Although buttons do seem dreadfully impractical compared to zippers."

"I noticed," Minion said wryly. "Nevertheless, they're kind of necessary for everyday wear."

"Ugh, don't you think I know that, Minion? I just wish that these things involved fewer buttons. And a little leather would be nice."

Minion watched, fascinated, as the brain-bot continue to tug on the stubborn button. The thread finally snapped and the button flew across the lair, never to be seen again. Both Minion and Megamind winced.

"Maybe I'll just roll the sleeves up," Megamind said, shooting a baleful glare at the impatient bot. It quickly dropped his arm and ducked out of the room.

"That might be a good idea, sir," Minion agreed.

When he was done, Megamind stepped over to the full-length mirror. He turned from side to side, examining his appearance critically. "Well, it's no Black Mamba, but I think it will do." As he stared at himself, he realized that the cut of the outfit emphasized his unusual head size and primary-colored skin. His alienness. A flicker of uncertainty passed through him. He turned to Minion. "Are you sure that I look magnificent enough?" he asked, plucking at the shirt collar. "Not too…villainous?"

Minion nodded encouragingly. "You look surprisingly un-evil, sir!" he said.

"And you're certain it's customary to leave the top shirt buttons unfastened?" he asked, doubt in his voice.

"Yes, sir, you saw the pictures too," Minion answered patiently.

"I suppose," Megamind said, not convinced. "It seems that buttons really are rather useless. Too bad I can't wear my cape." He heaved a sigh.

"You look just fine without it, sir," Minion said. "And I'm sure Ms. Ritchi will agree."

"Oh, alright," Megamind gave in. He puffed out his chest heroically and admired his reflection. "Then let's get going, you incredible ichthyoid, you!"

Minion shook his head. "I think you'd better go by yourself, sir."

"But—"

"…unless you want me to carry you to your date," Minion finished.

Megamind was silent for a rare moment. "I suppose you're right," he said finally. "I'd better get the googles, then."

"That would be goggles, sir," Minion corrected, bemused. "And they're on your head."

* * *

Next chapter: the date! Warning: there may be a little delay in posting this, as I'm working on a few projects for school. As always, please feel free to leave feedback, and thanks for reading! :)


	3. Chapter 3: The Date

**Disclaimer:** Megamind and Roxanne are (c) DreamWorks Animation Studios. (Any OCs you notice from here on out are mine, though.) ;)

* * *

The first thing Roxanne heard when she sat down on the bench was the loud revving of a motorcycle engine. Her next thought was that it couldn't be Megamind because she had seen his hover-bike thing crash into a building in that last battle with Hal. (She still refused to think of Hal by his adopted moniker; he wasn't "super" anything.) She twiddled her thumbs as she waited, a cool breeze ruffling her hair.

After a moment, Roxanne glanced up and saw a cloud of smoke moving toward her at an alarming speed. Sunlight glinted off goggles and a big blue helmet strapped to a bigger blue head. Ah—Megamind had a backup motorcycle. He probably had backups of all of his inventions in case of catastrophic failure…logical, since that used to happen more often than not, she thought wryly.

She watched the hovercycle pull a U-turn and stop in a zone clearly marked "No Parking." Roxanne rolled her eyes at this. Some villainous habits evidently took longer to break than others. She'd always wondered how he'd managed to get into her apartment to kidnap her without anyone noticing the huge, evil-looking black car parked outside—well, now she knew.

Megamind hopped off of the bike, flicking a switch as he did so, and the hovercycle and accessories disappeared under an invisibility shield. He had a mysterious bundle tucked under one arm as he marched across the street to her apartment building. Roxanne noticed with a start that he was wearing a dark dress shirt and khakis instead of the leathers that she was so used to. Megamind looked surprisingly…un-supervillain-ish. Even with his blue skin and big head.

He was smiling a little, like a kid on Christmas Day. _He must not have noticed me yet,_ she thought with amusement,_ or he probably would be trying a little harder to hide his glee._ "Hey," she called to him as he was about to pass her by.

Megamind skidded to a stop, his smile vanishing. "Oh! Uh, hi," he stammered. "I thought you'd be, uh..." He gestured vaguely upward at the building.

Roxanne raised an eyebrow. "I didn't think Carlos would take kindly to being dehydrated again," she explained. She stood and walked over to him. "So, you still want to get coffee?"

"Of course!" he replied quickly, affronted. He abruptly grabbed the lumpy bundle he'd been carrying and thrust it at her. "This…is for you," he said. He studied the sidewalk.

Surprised, Roxanne took the package. The plastic crinkled as she unwrapped it. A dozen roses lay in a florist's bag, eleven yellow and one red. The heads were a little crushed from the rough treatment they'd received, but Roxanne was touched by the gesture. "Thanks," she said, smiling and cradling the flowers. "What do the colors mean?"

His eyes lit up as he launched into what Roxanne privately thought of as his "Wikipedia" mode. "Well, yellow is traditionally thought of as signifying friendship and respect, but it can also mean new beginnings," Megamind said. "Red is, uh, also friendship." Smooth, he thought, irritated at himself. He should have just stuck to yellow.

"Ah," Roxanne replied, lips curving into a little smile. Unexpectedly, she felt her cheeks grow warm. She knew what he'd left out: red was for love. But for once she didn't point out his mistake. "Well, the coffee shop's around the corner," she said with her customary briskness. "You hungry?"

"Yes! Starving!" Megamind replied eagerly, obviously grateful for the change in topic. Roxanne started walking. Megamind fell in beside her. "I gave Minion the day off," he continued, keeping an arm's length between himself and Roxanne, "and he said the kitchen was off-limits until he gets back." In reality, he'd been too nervous to eat despite Minion's insistence that he _at least_ eat a croissant or _something._

A bell chimed as the pair entered the coffee shop. The barista, a young woman with a ponytail, smiled at Roxanne and waved in greeting. "Hey, Roxie! What can I getcha? The usual?" she asked.

Roxanne had long ago given up correcting others' use of her name. It was pretty pointless, and by now everyone had heard Metro Man calling her "Roxie" instead of the infinitely more preferable "Roxanne." Oh well. She returned the girl's friendly smile. "Yeah, that would be great. Could you make it a double?"

The barista nodded, grabbing a cup. "Sure! And what would your friend—oh!" she yelped, finally noticing who exactly had accompanied Roxanne. "Um, would Mr. Megamind like anything?"

Roxanne glanced over at him. He was taking apart one of the thermoses on the window display and poking at the built-in stirrer curiously. She cleared her throat to get his attention.

Guilty green eyes met hers. Megamind carefully set the thermos down as if afraid he'd break it. "Me?" he squeaked, then cleared his throat. "I'll, uh, have whatever she's having," he said to the girl behind the counter. "And a croysent." The barista grabbed another cup and scribbled on the side, not making eye contact. Roxanne sighed and took the croissant and coffees from the girl.

When it was obvious that Megamind had no intention of stepping away from the array of coffee mugs, she walked over and hooked an arm through his, leading him to a little table outside. His arm tensed at her touch, but she pretended not to notice. She set the flowers on the table next to their cups.

They sipped at their drinks for a few moments. An awkward silence fell.

"So, how are you—"

"How have you—" They spoke simultaneously.

"You first," Roxanne said, chuckling at the unexpected absurdity of the situation. They'd never had a problem talking to each other before. Of course, it had usually consisted of bantering while she was tied to a chair and Megamind was detailing his latest evil plan. But still.

A relieved grin spread across Megamind's face. He relaxed, Roxanne's laughter easing a knot of tension in his chest that he hadn't noticed before. "Things have been hectic around the lair," he admitted. "Or so Minion tells me."

Roxanne narrowed her eyes, picking up on the information he'd left out. "And where were you?"

Megamind grimaced, both at the memory and at Roxanne's unerring accuracy. "The hospital. The doctors weren't sure how my 'alien' physiology worked, but I'm the only hero they've got, so they wanted to make sure I wasn't going to die on them." He gestured airily to his large blue head. "I assured them that I'm more resilient than humans, and heal much more quickly, but they wouldn't listen. I was already planning to have Minion break me out."

"And?" she prompted.

Megamind answered with an innocent shrug. "I found a lab coat just lying around, so I put it on and they just let me go."

"Just lying around, huh?" Roxanne's knowing little smirk made Megamind squirm inwardly. Darn those nosy reporter skills.

"Alright, fine, I borrowed it from an orderly," he muttered reluctantly. "Happy now?"

She couldn't hold back a giggle. "I knew it!" Roxanne's amusement was contagious, and Megamind felt a little flutter in his chest as he watched her. His lips twitched despite his attempt at a pout. She had the prettiest blue eyes.

Roxanne's smile faded as a thought occurred to her. "Wait, you said you left early…does that mean you aren't completely recovered?" An unexpected twinge of worry accompanied the thought. Was that a bruise under his left eye, or just a shadow? And since when had she noticed such things?

"No, no, I'm fine," he said, waving a hand dismissively. "Just petchy."

"Peachy," she corrected automatically. She took a sip of her coffee and glanced at him over the rim of her cup. "And just for the record, I don't believe you," she added teasingly.

Megamind stiffened in his seat and frowned deeply. "I'm not lying!" he insisted, stung. His insides knotted with an odd sort of fear. Would he ever be able to convince Roxanne that he could be trusted? He _had_ lied to her for quite a long time. Maybe he didn't deserve her trust.

"Wait!" Roxanne interjected, seeing the hurt in his eyes. She hadn't realized Megamind was so sensitive. Or maybe she'd just gotten better at reading him lately. "That's not what I meant. I was teasing." At his disbelieving look, she decided to change tactics. "Oh, I was wondering, were you nervous about seeing me today?" she asked casually.

He was taken aback by the seemingly random question, but recovered quickly. "Of course not," he lied.

"Uh-huh," she said, not believing him for a second. "And that's why you decided to dress up. In a new shirt, no less." Roxanne reached over the table and slipped a finger under his collar, gently tugging on a store tag that he'd forgotten to remove. Her hand brushed the curve of his neck. His skin was warm and soft against Roxanne's fingertips, and for some reason this disturbed her. She quickly withdrew her hand and sat back in her chair.

Megamind gulped, a little zing of electricity shooting down his spine and setting his heart to racing. The tingling sensation drifted lower when he noticed how low-cut Roxanne's shirt was. When he realized the direction his thoughts were going, he snapped his gaze back up to her face. "So, how did you figure me out?" he asked, voice cracking a little.

"The same way I can tell you're not as invincible as you say you are," Roxanne replied. She didn't notice the slightly glazed look in Megamind's eyes. "I could see the outline of the tag through your shirt. Right above those suspicious creases." She looked at his ribs significantly.

Megamind's eyes widened in surprise. Healways had underestimated Roxanne's powers of observation. "You noticed the bandages too, huh?" he asked sheepishly.

She smirked. "Well, I thought I saw _something_, but wasn't positive until just now. Thanks for verifying that."

Megamind grinned in spite of himself. "Gah, once again I'm outwitted by Roxanne Ritchi, investigative journalist!" He shook his head in mock sorrow. "At this rate I'm going to have to drop the 'brilliant' from my title."

The mischievous look he gave her made Roxanne's heart skip a beat. She needed to stop drinking so much espresso. In any case, she thought, she was going to have to seriously re-evaluate this relationship. She hadn't expected to feel for Megamind what she'd felt for "Bernard," not after the betrayal she'd felt at his deception. But her uncertainty had been gnawing at her for the past few weeks, and she still wasn't sure how she felt about the situation.

That unresolved feeling was only one reason she'd asked Megamind out, though. The other reason, if she was completely honest with herself, was that she'd simply wanted to see him. Now _that_was a thought. Roxanne wondered how Megamind would react if she let thatlittle tidbit slip. Luckily, her experience in front of the camera ensured that none of her chaotic emotions showed. She took a drink from her coffee and collected herself. "If that's the case," she said calmly, "what _is_ your new name going to be?"

"What do you mean?" he asked around a mouthful of pastry. Crumbs flecked his lips and goatee.

"Well, you can't very well go around calling yourself 'master of all evil' anymore." Although her tone was confident, Roxanne was secretly a little nervous about what his response would be. Did he still want to be a hero? And...where did she fit in even if he did? "So what do you think you'll do?"

Megamind's brow furrowed thoughtfully. "Truthfully, I haven't given it much thought. I'll get back to you on that." Minion would probably have some opinions about the subject; he made a mental note to ask the fish about it. They could use The Google.

Roxanne nodded and opened her mouth to ask another question, but he interrupted her by raising an index finger and waggling it at her. "Ah ah ah, Ms. Ritchi," he said slyly. "You've had your interview. Now it's my turn."

He had a point. A corner of her mouth kicked up. "Alright, shoot." When his eyes lit up with excitement, she amended, "But I reserve the right to say 'no comment.'"

"Deal," he said, leaning forward and lacing his fingers together. He rested his chin on them. "Now, how have you been up to?" he asked with a boyishly expectant smile.

Roxanne was struck by the familiarity of the expression. She'd only ever seen that look on Bernard's face. It was kind of…strange…seeing it on Megamind's. She swallowed. "Not much other than working and doctors' visits," she said honestly. "But then, I've always been kind of a workaholic."

"I know," Megamind murmured in what he hoped was a sympathetic tone. Roxanne glared at him. Evidently his sympathetic voice needed work, he thought ruefully. He'd have to practice with Minion later. "Sorry. Go on."

She sighed. "I know you know. That's because you and Minion were basically my entire social life for the past few years."

"Seriously?" he asked, dark eyebrows arching in surprise. Although he'd never seen Roxanne going out with friends, he'd always assumed that she was out and about on the nights he hadn't kidnapped—err, seen her.

She gave him an incredulous look. "You mean you didn't know? What about all those Friday night kidnappings?" These had usually occurred at work or at her home. Neither of which constituted an active social life, she thought wryly.

He blinked. "Well, I- I mean, I sort of guessed, but…"

Roxanne sat back in her chair, dumbfounded. "You had no idea," she stated flatly, shaking her head. "When did you think I was finding the time to go out with friends? Between working five days a week and being super-bait on my days off, I barely had enough time to sleep, let alone go bar-hopping. Not that I wanted to," she added with a touch of amusement. "But the sleep would've been nice."

"Bar-hopping?" Megamind focused on the unfamiliar phrase, turning it around on his tongue. How did that work? Did people actually leap from the roof of one building to the next? What was the purpose? Why hadn't he noticed this before?

"It's a figure of speech," Roxanne explained quickly, seeing Megamind's eyes grow distant and guessing (correctly) that he was making some kind of crazy probability calculations. "It just means going out to bars. Drinking, dancing, that sort of thing."

"Oh," Megamind said, deflated. The reality was much less interesting than what he was picturing. "And that's…amusing?"

"It's supposed to be fun, yeah," Roxanne replied curiously. Megamind really hadn't gotten out much, had he? She'd always imagined him hanging out with his prison friends or something in-between his "evil" plots. "Hanging out with friends and such."

"Ah," Megamind replied, not meeting her eyes. "Of course. Friends." His tone was suspiciously casual.

A hundred little puzzle pieces suddenly clicked into place in Roxanne's mind: the constant kidnappings, the midnight visits, the flirting. No wonder he'd always seemed so ridiculously eager to see her; she'd been his only human interaction outside of law enforcement! Well, Metro Man sort of counted, Roxanne allowed, but he wasn't really human. And he was technically allied with the police. Roxanne could talk with her friends at work or call her family any time she wanted. Megamind, on the other hand…well, she actually had no idea whether he had family, or whether there were others like him.

The quiet moment gave Roxanne a chance to covertly study Megamind across the table. Over the past five years, she had been interacting with the blue alien on such a regular basis that his appearance no longer seemed unusual to her. Initially she'd been curious about his origins, but after having her questions deflected a few times, she'd eventually stopped asking. After a while, Megamind had become just another guy in her life, albeit one who happened to be a supervillain. Who regularly held her hostage. Even the knock-out gas and the lair didn't add up to the awfulness of some of the dates she'd been on.

Now, though, her reporter's instincts were aroused. Maybe her interest was due to the fact that Megamind's job title had so drastically changed, but if she were completely honest with herself, it was that she was seriously considering dating him. This thought should have disturbed her, but it didn't.

The subject of Roxanne's interest slurped down the last of his coffee and made a face at the taste of the gritty chocolate at the bottom of the cup. Pretending to study the passing cars, Megamind watched Roxanne out of the corner of one eye. "So," he began tentatively, "what do you—err, _would _you do if you had more free time?"

Roxanne was pleased that he wanted to know more about her, too. "Well, for one, I like to go to the library occasionally, and ride my bike," she replied, ticking items off on her fingers. "And I like taking walks in the park. Sometimes I even pack a lunch." A small smile crossed her lips.

At this last remark, Megamind's eyes widened. "Oh," he said, studying Roxanne's face for any trace of sarcasm. She'd fooled him with that deceptively innocent look before. Despite this fact, his hopes rose. "You mean all the things you did with…?"

"Bernard, yes," Roxanne said, nodding.

Megamind's heart plummeted back down to his stomach. "Right. Bernard," he mumbled, mentally smacking himself for thinking she'd actually meant _him_.

Seeing his shoulders slump, Roxanne realized that he'd taken her statement the wrong way. "Or rather, you," she continued. Predictably, Megamind brightened. Something in his green eyes made her blurt out, "It _was_ you, wasn't it? The whole time?" The question suddenly seemed important.

"Oh, I assure you, Miss Ritchi, it was most certainly me," Megamind replied earnestly. A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth. Perhaps Roxanne didn't hate him after all! He couldn't resist continuing. "Who else is so brilliantly entertaining and dashingly witty?"

_And who else has such a huge ego?_ Roxanne thought, relaxing. She held in the thought, though, since it amused her to watch him preen. "Honestly, Megamind, I can't say I've ever met someone with your unique combination of…attributes," she said.

He chose to take that as a compliment. "Of course you haven't," Megamind said proudly. "It's not every day you see a brain the size of this one."

"Correction: it's not every day I see a head the size of that one," Roxanne retorted. "Who can say for sure whether there's a larger-than-average brain inside?"

"What?" Megamind said, playing along. "You doubt my mental prowess?" He pronounced the word "pro-ess."

"I'd think someone with a brain the size of yours would be able to figure that one out," Roxanne teased.

"Ah-hah! So you admit it!" A triumphant grin lit Megamind's face at the word "brain." He resisted the urge to do a fist pump.

"Admit what?" Roxanne asked innocently. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Megamind shook his head, still grinning. "Oh, no, you don't, Miss Ritchi," he said. "You of all people should know this by now. Those tricks"—he stood, grabbing his cup to take it to the trash can—"won't work"—he bent over to Roxanne's ear—"on me."

His warm breath whispered across Roxanne's cheek, making her shiver. Later, she would refuse to explain why she did what she did next, but at that moment, all she could think of was how much she wanted to wipe the self-satisfied smirk off of Megamind's face. Impulsively, she leaned up out of her chair and kissed him lightly on the cheek.

Megamind jerked back, shocked, a violet blush spreading across his face and down his slender neck. Although her heart was racing, Roxanne couldn't help but smile a touch evilly at the awkward way he marched over to the trashcan, barely managing to avoid tripping over his own feet.

Wobbling back to the table, Megamind's brain was spinning. Why had she done that? Was she still just teasing? What did it mean? Why were relationships so complicated? His train of thought derailed abruptly when he noticed her smug little smirk and suddenly remembered how soft her lips were. "Uh, I finished my coffee," he managed, standing by his abandoned seat.

"Oh, are you ready to go?" Roxanne wondered at the little swell of disappointment she felt. After all, she had acted hastily. It wasn't as if she'd meant to kiss Megamind, so she certainly didn't care if he stuck around afterward. What was she, fifteen?

Megamind was stunned for the second time in less than five minutes. The girl of his dreams really thought he wanted to leave in the middle of their date? And he'd thought she could read him so well. "Only if you are," Megamind said with a sweet half-smile. Roxanne shook her head, but before she could say anything, he continued, "Oh, good. I was wondering if you'd like to…"—he thought back to her list of preferred activities—"take a walk in the park?" He stepped to her side and held out a gallant arm.

Roxanne answered Megamind's smile with one of her own. She scooped up the bundle of roses and tucked her other hand into the crook of his elbow, trying not to bump his injured ribs. His skin was warm through the fabric of his shirt. "I'd like that," she replied.

* * *

_To be continued...! The date isn't over just yet. _

_Do let me know if you have any feedback; I won't bite, I promise. :D  
_


	4. Chapter 4: Questions and Answers

**Author's note:** I still don't own "Megamind" or any of its characters. (But I will own the DVD, since tomorrow is the U.S. release date!) :D Anyway, as always, feel free to leave feedback, and thanks for reading.

* * *

The late spring breeze whipped Roxanne's skirt around her knees. Her woolen pea-coat kept the brisk air from edging into cold, but she held on to Megamind's arm anyway.

She couldn't help feeling a sense of déjà vu; she'd walked this way with "Bernard" just weeks before. Megamind even _smelled_ like him; that faint, musky scent of cologne and leather had so intrigued her when she'd thought she was dating a museum curator. The leather scent made more sense now, but she'd never have guessed that Megamind was the cologne-wearing type.

Despite having been reassured earlier, Roxanne still worried. How much of the man she'd gotten to know had been the real Megamind, and how much had been improvisation? Would she ever get the chance to find out? Roxanne pushed the questions away, determined to enjoy herself today. Even (especially?) if this thing with Megamind didn't work out.

She really _wanted_ it to work out, Roxanne acknowledged uncomfortably. It had been a few weeks since the big battle, so she couldn't blame her continued attraction to the thin blue alien on shock, or a misplaced sense of gratitude, or any of the other emotions she'd tried to pin it on. That was not a good sign.

While Roxanne was wrestling with her own practical nature, Megamind was simply concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other and not grinning like an idiot. It was so great to have Roxanne walking next to him—as Megamind, not Bernard—that he had to keep reminding himself not to stare at her in wonder. His hearts thumped a rapid drumbeat in his chest. Meanwhile, the ache in his ribs let him know that he was not, despite all evidence to the contrary, dreaming.

Megamind took a deep breath in an attempt to recollect his scattered thoughts, but his plan backfired. Roxanne smelled like lemons. It was nice that she was so close to his height, he mused. That way he could look into her eyes when she was talking, or just standing next to him…

Suddenly those blue eyes met his own. Megamind jerked his gaze back to the sidewalk in front of them. Roxanne noticed, and decided to take advantage of his discomfiture. "See, isn't this nicer than kidnapping?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, I don't know," Megamind replied, recovering smoothly. "I can think of some advantages." He waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Roxanne rolled her eyes (which he had expected) and blushed (which he hadn't). He was irrationally pleased by this reaction, even when she muttered something that sounded like "perv."

They made their way to a relatively secluded patch of grass. Children's voices echoed from across the park. Megamind leaned against a tree, the rough bark scraping his back through his thin dress shirt. He folded his long limbs into a cross-legged position. Roxanne sat close by, knees curled up beneath her, sun dappling her face. He was just close enough to see the cute freckles that dusted her nose. She'd always vehemently denied the existence of said freckles, but he'd always considered them part of her charm.

Despite the caffeine that was undoubtedly coursing through his system, Megamind relaxed for the first time in what felt like months. Then again, maybe that was the effect that caffeine had on his species. He closed his eyes in contentment.

"You never really answered my question," Roxanne commented, startling him from his reverie.

"W-what?" he stammered. "Which question?"

"About your plans for the future," she replied, improvising a little. "You said you'd think about your new name, but what are you going to do for, you know, a job?"

He stared off into the distance. It wouldn't do to admit that he'd been avoiding thinking about that. But he couldn't think of anything else to say. "Become a hero, I guess," he said after a moment. "Use my horribly evil inventions for…delightfully good causes?"

A giggle escaped Roxanne's lips. "That sounds like a yogurt commercial."

"Yoggert? Eugh." He made a face. "I don't eat that stuff."

"What? Why not?" she asked curiously.

Megamind examined her face for indications of insanity. "Because it is fermented _milk_ with _bacteria_ added to it," he explained as if to a very slow, very small child. "Why would anyone _eat _that?"

"But—but it's good bacteria," she argued weakly, too amused to think properly.

"Maybe for you," he retorted. "It always made me sick." He allowed his eyelids to droop shut again. "A product of my alien biology, I suppose."

That last sentence struck Roxanne like a blow, as she'd never really stopped to consider how very different his body was from a normal human's. Actually, she'd almost forgotten that he was an alien at all, despite the fact that he healed quickly and never scarred, even after years of explosions and battles. "Ah," she said, feeling stupid. "You're planning to use your formerly evil inventions to help the city, then."

One eye cracked open. "Oh, sure," he said unconvincingly.

She couldn't resist teasing him a little. "Oh? Then what are you going to use the robo-sheep for?"

Both of his eyes snapped open and focused on Roxanne in mingled shock and admiration. "How did you know about those?"

"Not telling," she said airily. She'd never admit that she'd heard him brag about them to Minion once when they'd thought she was still unconscious. A good journalist never betrayed her sources. "How are you planning to use them for 'good'?"

"They could be used in the rappy," he said. "Like dogs."

"Therapy?" Roxanne echoed, incredulous. "But they have rocket launchers built into their sides!"

"Don't forget the jetpacks," he added with a proud smile. "I was pretty disappointed that I couldn't use them to fight Metro Man, back when…well, you know." Megamind's voice trailed off as he remembered that painful night at the museum. Suddenly he had an idea. "What if I reprogrammed them to be good robo-sheep? Perhaps they could help protect human infants from their natural predators, or something!"

"What 'natural predators'?" Roxanne asked, intrigued despite her horror at the idea of war machines taking care of newborns.

"Oh, you know." He gestured vaguely. "Sharks, alligators, that sort of thing."

"Sharks can't travel on land, and the only alligators in Metro City are in your lair," she pointed out. "Besides, babies need humans to protect them. Not rocket-powered robotic livestock."

"Right. Um. Well." Megamind scratched his goatee sheepishly. "Back to the drawing board, then."

She took pity on him. "That's alright. Rome wasn't built in a day, after all."

"Thanks," he said, and sighed. "It's just…"

"What?" Roxanne questioned gently. She scooted a little closer to hear his answer.

"Being evil was my raisin detter," Megamind said, plucking at a blade of grass. "My reason for living. I was the bad guy, Metro Man was the good guy, and…well, we fought, he won, that was life. We had a nice little routine going. Now I'm not—I don't fit." He rolled the grass blade between his index finger and thumb.

Impulsively, Roxanne reached out and touched the back of the restless blue hand. He twitched at her touch and then held very still. "You don't know that," Roxanne said quietly, maintaining the contact. "The people of Metro City accepted you as a hero pretty readily a couple of weeks ago. Maybe you should give us the benefit of the doubt."

"I'd hardly count you among those heathens," Megamind scoffed. Her fingertips were warm against his hand. "You are much more intelligent and certainly more capable than most of the citizens of Metrocity." As always, he pronounced the name as if it rhymed with "atrocity."

"Thanks," Roxanne said wryly. "I'm flattered. But don't you think you're holding the rest of the city to pretty unrealistic standards?"

"Not at all," he said. "If I don't expect more out of them, what reason would they have to improve? I won't always be there to protect everyone." Assuming he could protect anyone in the first place, said a nasty little voice in the back of his head.

She had to admit that he had a point. "Just try to go a little easy on them at first, hm?" she suggested, giving him a little smile.

"Oh, I'll work them into it," he assured her. "After all, I need some time to adjust to the idea myself." Megamind leaned his head back against the tree and stared at the sky. "Maybe a lot of time," he muttered.

Lack of sleep caused Roxanne's brain to take leave of her body. Or at least that was the only way she could rationalize lacing her fingers more firmly with his and squeezing comfortingly. If she'd been in her right mind, she probably would have pulled away from him rather than drawing nearer and leaning her own back against the big tree.

Then again, if she'd done that, she might not have seen him glance over at her with that painfully hopeful look that tugged at her heart. And she might have missed the little smile he gave her as he returned the squeeze. Their eyes met and held. The moment grew, stretching like taffy, and neither knew what to say.

Roxanne finally spoke just to break the silence. "Your hands are warm," she said, looking down at the blue fingers twined around her cream-colored ones.

He followed her gaze. "Ah, yes. That would be because my body temperature is naturally a few degrees higher than a human's."

"Oh. I wonder why I never noticed that…before." She'd been about to say "when you were Bernard," but she was reluctant to bring up the "B" word again.

"You mean when I was wearing the holo-watch?" Megamind asked, shooting her a sidelong glance. "That would probably be because of the gloves."

Okay, now she was surprised. "What? But I didn't feel any spikes!" His hands had felt a tiny bit odd, Roxanne admitted, but this was too much.

"I have more than one pair of gloves, you know," he pouted. "Not _all_ of them have spikes. Those were my work gloves."

"As opposed to…?" She couldn't remember seeing any others. Then again, maybe she hadn't been paying attention.

His mouth quirked. "My supervillain gloves were made mostly for protection, hence the thick leather and spikes. But my work gloves are made for precision." He wiggled the fingers of his free hand to demonstrate. "The thin polymer is heat resistant and less conductive, so I don't burn or shock myself while I'm building my inventions. I wear them pretty much all the time."

Roxanne thought that over. "So does that mean you've never held anyone's hand before?"

She was close enough to see the tips of his slightly-pointed ears darken to a rosy pink as he looked away from her. "You are correct, Ms. Ritchi, as usual," Megamind said in a defeated sort of voice. It was obvious that he was telling the truth.

"Roxanne," she corrected, watching him carefully.

"What?"

"You keep calling me Ms. Ritchi. Just call me Roxanne." Her lips curved in a mysterious smile.

"Roxanne," Megamind repeated, transfixed. Something in her expression reminded him powerfully of the last date they'd had in that same park, when they'd shared secrets on a picnic blanket. For that short time, he'd managed to convince himself that he was just a normal guy, one who didn't stick out and had a chance at getting the girl. He'd surprised himself with how good he'd been at lying, and not only to himself.

Guilt closed his throat, and he slipped his hand out from under hers. "Roxanne," he began, "You know, I never got to tell you, I'm sorry about—"

"I know," she interrupted, placing her index finger against his lips.

"Can you forgive me?" he asked around her finger. The way he said it, like he was trying not to hope for the best but failing miserably, made Roxanne feel awful. He was obviously expecting her to say no.

"I'm here, aren't I?" she answered, pulling her hand back, and he sagged a little in relief. "Besides, you're not the only one at fault. In hindsight, I—didn't handle things too well, either. Can you forgive me?"

"For what?" he asked. "You behaved exactly as I had expected you would."

Ouch, Roxanne thought. He'd expected her to react that badly? Not exactly a commendation of her winning personality. Then again, she had come close to death several times that day, so she couldn't be too hard on herself.

His hand curled into a fist on his lap as he continued. "Besides, I deserved it."

She shook her head. "Whether you deserved it or not, I took out my stress on you. I'd like to think that I would've been more reasonable if I hadn't just survived that harrowing experience with Hal."

Megamind's brow furrowed. "What are you talking about?"

Roxanne stared at him in shock. "You mean you don't know?" How could he _not _have known? Hadn't he been the one to give Hal his powers in the first place?

"Know _what?_" he pressed.

"I thought—you—huh." She frowned, a distant look in her eyes, then shook her head to bring herself back to the present. "Well, anyway. You remember that night, when I came in with my hair standing up on end, and you said it looked exciting?" He nodded, concern showing in his face. She looked away. "Well, it looked like that because I'd just climbed down from the top of Metro Tower. Hal left me there when I told him I wasn't interested in dating him. After tossing me in the air like a rag doll a few dozen times." Roxanne shuddered a little at the memory. Being in tall buildings still bothered her, and the psychiatrists had warned her that she might always be afraid of flying. "He said he was 'saving' me, when he was really just toying with me. I haven't been that scared in a long time." She finally glanced up to see Megamind's reaction.

What she saw shocked her. Megamind's face was slack, nearly devoid of emotion—except for his eyes, which blazed with a raw fury she'd never seen in him before. If she'd had any doubts left as to whether or not he'd really known about the Hal Incident, that alone would have convinced her.

"That _bastard,_" Megamind growled fiercely. "I should have _destroyed _him!"

"There was no way you could have predicted Hal's craziness," Roxanne argued. "I mean, yeah, you gave him super powers, which was stupid, but I worked with Hal for _years_ and I still had no idea of what he was really like." It was still a surprise to her that she hadn't noticed anything odd about her cameraman in all that time. Then again, she thought she'd known Megamind too, but now here she was.

"I could've disintegratedhim," Megamind continued. He mimed holding the gun and pulling the trigger. "Fwoosh! No more Titan. It would have solved all our problems." Although he tried to keep his tone light, he wasn't entirely joking.

Roxanne laughed shakily. "I guess I should have brought it up earlier and saved us both some trouble," she said. "I just assumed…"

Comprehension dawned, taking the wind out of his sails. He dropped his hands into his lap. "You assumed that I knew."

She nodded, then shrugged a little. "I'd just managed to solve the puzzle that night, and Titan—I mean, Hal—was at the center of it. When I found out that you'd created him, thinking you'd chosen him on purpose, I…made the logical connection."

"No wonder you were so angry." He'd considered asking about her hair that night, but he'd forgotten. And then the battle with Titan had wiped all thoughts of romance from his mind, replacing them with less lofty ambitions like "not being burned to death by laser vision" and "keeping his limbs attached to his body."

"Well, yeah, that was part of it, but not all," she said, giving him a pointed look. "I was still pissed about you lying to me."

He ducked his big blue head and looked up at her through his lashes. "Yes, I know. I won't lie to you like that ever again, Roxanne," he promised.

"You'd better not," she warned, not about to let him know how thoroughly won over she was. He was just so earnest! And—cute. How was it that she hadn't noticed before? But then, she hadn't noticed a lot of things, like how the muscles in his lean arms moved when he gestured, or the way his green eyes softened when he looked at her…She mentally shook herself when she realized where her thoughts were headed. _Get ahold of yourself, Roxanne! _she thought, hoping she wasn't blushing.

Megamind didn't notice. "I won't," he said vehemently. Hopefully he wouldn't need to. Staying honest would take some hard work, but he'd do his best. Maybe he could practice not lying with Minion. That fish was the most honest soul he'd ever known. Perhaps not the best quality in an evil henchman, he thought in hindsight. Oh well, that didn't matter now. "I swear it on my honor as…a former supervillain!" Megamind tried to strike a heroic pose.

The silly picture he made—sitting cross-legged on the grass with his shirtsleeves rolled up and arms akimbo—made Roxanne chuckle. "I'd better be getting back," she said regretfully. "I've got half a dozen reports to clean up before work Monday."

"Oh, of course!" he said, smacking his forehead. "I lost track of time."

She stood, brushing grass off of her skirt and stretching her legs. When she'd worked the wobbles out, she offered Megamind a hand. He took it gratefully and hauled himself up.

"I think my legs are unconscious," he commented.

Roxanne smiled at the turn of phrase. "Yeah, mine fell asleep too." Stretching her arms above her head, she leaned first to one side and then to the other. "I just hope I didn't get grass stains on this skirt. I really like it."

"Me too," the blue alien murmured distractedly. The skirt showed off her…curves…quite nicely.

She followed his gaze and abruptly stopped stretching. "Augh, you are so predictable!" she exclaimed, punching him lightly in the arm.

He merely grinned. What was it Minion had told him back in their shool days? Ah, yes: with girls, any contact is good contact. "If I'm so predictable," he asked Roxanne slyly, "then why are your cheeks turning pink?"

"You're seeing things," she said, sticking her tongue out. It was childish, perhaps, but it still felt good.

"Oh, definitely," he murmured. His eyes flicked downward briefly and his grin widened. "Good things."

"Ugh, you are such a _guy _sometimes!" Roxanne exclaimed, throwing up her arms in mock anger as she swept past him.

"Why, thank you for noticing, Ms. Ritchi," he replied cheekily, dancing ahead of her.

She lengthened her strides to keep up. "Well, you never know," she said with mock seriousness. Actually, she _had_ wondered once or twice if his taste for the theatrical indicated a sexual preference, but she decided not to inform him of this. "You _are_ an alien after all. Plus, with all the leather, and the spikes…"

He was genuinely offended. "Hmmph. I'll bet you never doubted _Metro Mahn's_ masculinity," he interrupted, lips pursed. "Just because he looks more _human._"

"Huh?" Roxanne blinked, surprised by his sudden leap of logic. "No, I didn't—of course I knew you were a _guy_, just—"

"What, you didn't know that I had _feelings_?" he suggested acerbically.

She had to admit that her words sounded pretty bad out-of-context. "No, I knew that, too," she said, trying not to insult him any further. This whole "explaining herself to Megamind" thing was new; in the past, she'd gleefully misled him, trying to confuse him with double entendres and mocking his malapropisms. But now that she knew him better, and knew that he cared about her…She sighed. "I meant that I wasn't sure if you were—" Roxanne paused, almost hoping he'd interrupt her before she said anything she'd regret later, "—interested in me," she muttered. There. She'd said it. She mentally smacked herself for sounding like such an idiot.

When a moment passed and he still hadn't spoken, she stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. Megamind was gaping at her, jaw slack.

"What?" she snapped defensively.

"You…you didn't think I was _attracted_ to you?" Megamind burst out incredulously. "But the—I mean, what about…all the…flirting?" His hands fluttered in the air as he tried to get his point across. Then a horrible thought occurred to him. "Wait, that _was_ flirting, wasn't it?"

Roxanne's first instinct was to say "of course not," since until recently their interaction had been limited to hostage situations. But then she thought back over the past five years. How they'd met on her first field assignment when she was fresh out of college, the witty barbs they'd shot back and forth, neither willing to back down, the way he'd made a new hostage chair every time she'd complained of discomfort (even if he'd explained it away as "part of the evil plan").

Now that she thought about it, Megamind and Metro Man (and even Minion) had been perfect sounding boards for her one-liners, and she'd never been afraid of Megamind himself, only—occasionally—of a creation that he'd lost control of.

"I…guess it was," she said slowly. She'd never really thought of their past relationship in that context before, but it was a pretty accurate description.

"Oh, good," Megamind said with a relieved smile. "For a moment there, I…well, haha, never mind that." He was babbling. He could just hear Minion saying, _pull yourself together, sir!_

Roxanne brushed a lock of hair out of her face. Suddenly the humor of the situation hit her, and her smile grew into a grin, which blossomed into rolling laughter. She doubled over, holding her stomach as she giggled uncontrollably.

Her laughter was contagious, and soon they were both rolling with mirth in the middle of the sidewalk. Passersby gave them curious looks. Megamind finally straightened and took a deep breath to steady himself. "Whew," he said. "Wow. I don't know what went over me there."

"Me neither," Roxanne said, panting and wiping a tear from her eye. "And it's 'came over me.'"

"Potato tomato," Megamind retorted. He started walking again, and she fell into step beside him. "Do all reporters insist on correcting people all the time?"

"Only the good ones," she countered. They were close enough that his sleeve brushed hers. She reached down and took his hand, smiling when he jumped a little. "What's the matter, are you all bantered out?" she asked teasingly.

"Ahem. Nonsense, I'm just giving you a chance to rest your feeble human brain," he replied loftily. In reality, his non-human brain turned to mush when Roxanne held his hand like that. Her skin was warm, and a decidedly soft part of her was pressing up against his arm…The witty repartee could wait.

"Uh-huh," she murmured, seeing the dreamy look in his eyes. Then she spotted her apartment building down the street. "Oh, we're here."

Pushing aside his disappointment, he asked, "Can I walk you to your door?"

"Sure." Roxanne was pleased. No one had asked her that since she was in high school. Well, not unless they had other intentions, anyway. And to think she'd thought Megamind didn't have a romantic bone in his skinny blue body.

When they'd crossed the street, she pulled him into a little alcove where they couldn't be seen from the street. "I had fun today," she said honestly.

"So did I," he said, unconsciously leaning toward her. "Maybe we could do it again?"

"Sounds good." She reached up to brush another wisp of hair away from her forehead, but Megamind beat her to the chase. He tucked the strand behind her ear.

Then he realized what he was doing and jumped back. "Oh, uh, sorry about that," he said quickly, blushing for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

Instead of responding verbally, Roxanne stood on her tiptoes and kissed him full on the lips. Megamind was so surprised that he didn't respond at first, but then his lips softened and he returned the kiss eagerly, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close. One of Roxanne's hands snaked around his neck and caressed the sensitive skin there. He shivered.

They pulled apart after a few seconds, panting a little, hearts racing in tandem. Roxanne was the first to regain her voice. "So, I'm free next Friday night," she hinted. As much as she'd _like_ to do more, she didn't want to rush things. There was still a lot for her to think about.

"Me too!" Megamind said happily, consigning any and all plans he might have had for Friday evening to the devil. "Would you like to—go out and do something?"

Her smile was all the answer he needed. "I get off work at six," Roxanne called as she climbed the steps to the front door of the complex.

Megamind stood there, mesmerized by the sway of her hips, until she disappeared inside the building. Then he hopped on his hover-cycle, revved the engine a couple of times for good measure (did noise pollution count as evil?), and let out a joyful whoop as he sped toward home.

* * *

Comments/suggestions/critiques welcomed! :)


	5. Chapter 5: First Contact

**Author's note: **Um. So. Wow. *nervous cough* It's been a long time since I've updated this fic, and I sincerely apologize! ;_; But I'm resurrecting it FINISHING IT UP with this chapter, which really doesn't resolve much but will hopefully lend some sense of closure to the whole thing, as well as leading into a continuation fic (moar fluff, with dates) that I plan to start writing soon.

Without further ado, here's the final chapter of Loose Ends! As always, any and all feedback is welcomed, and thanks for reading and for your patience. :)

**Obligatory disclaimer: **I still don't own "Megamind," or any of its characters. I just play with them occasionally.

xxx

Chapter Five: First Contact

The doors to the lair burst open. "Minion!" Megamind called into the darkness, still floating on cloud nine. "Min_-yoooon! _Are you in there?" He peeked around a few corners, unsnapping his helmet and goggles as he went, but didn't see or hear his cybernetically-enhanced friend. "Huh, he must have gone out."

Reflections of flashing red lights signaled that the brain-bots were awake in the other room. "Daddy's home!" he announced happily, voice echoing off the metal surfaces. Frowning at the lack of response, he turned to walk into the next room to find the seemingly deaf bots when he heard a tapping sound. _Tap-tap, tap-tap_. Megamind cupped a hand around one ear and followed the sound to its source: the middle of a wall. Rats, perhaps?

_Tap-tap._ A little further down the wall this time. Then he heard a slight creak and groan of metal. "Oh no, first Metro Man, and now this?" he groaned. "I don't need any more apparitions!" he hissed at the wall. "Go away!"

"Sir?" came a barely audible voice. "Is that you?"

Megamind jumped back, and then clasped a hand to his chest in relief. "Minion! You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"Sorry, sir." Minion's words were muffled by the brick wall.

"What _are _you doing out there, anyway?" Megamind asked peevishly.

"Um." A pause. "I may have moved the doormat just a _teensy _weensy, itty bittybit when all those reporters were coming to the lair for interviews—"

"Well, thank goodness you did _something_ right, Minion," Megamind interrupted. "That was a serious security hazard." His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Wait…you didn't forget where the entrance was _again_, did you?"

"Maybe…a little?" Minion was probably holding his fingers a tiny distance apart to illustrate.

"You 'a little' forgot?" he asked sarcastically.

"Alright, I forgot completely. Could you help me out?" Minion pleaded.

Rolling his eyes, Megamind nevertheless took pity on the fish and turned the hologram brick wall off for a moment. No more than ten seconds passed before Minion came creaking and tromping in.

"Ah, thank you, Sir," said Minion, grinning in relief.

"Oh sure," Megamind replied. "Now, my man-friend," he said, slapping Minion on the shoulder in a brotherly sort of way, "do you want to hear all about my date with Roxanne?" He smiled expectantly. Surely Minion would want to know allthe details. Especially the kissing part!

"Uh, maybe later, Sir." Minion dodged, avoiding Megamind's eyes. "I have some work I need to do. Immediately. Like, right now." As he quickly sidled off into the next room, Megamind's sharp gaze caught—was that a _suitcase_ Minion was holding behind his back?

He filed that bit of information away for later. Right now he had more important plans to think about. Date-type plans. No, even better: _second_-date-type plans. He rubbed his hands together in glee.

xxx

While Megamind was still weaving his way through traffic, Roxanne was unlocking the door to her loft. Once inside, she filled a vase with water and carefully arranged her only _slightly_ crushed roses in it. Only then did she allow herself to collapse onto her big red couch and set her heels on the coffee table. Her muscles slowly relaxed. What a day it had been, and it was barely even mid-afternoon!

She sighed, sinking further into the soft couch cushions. The pile of papers on her side table beckoned, reminding her of the work she had to get through that day, but she couldn't seem to make herself move to get them. The caffeine must have worn off, she thought, as her eyelids slowly drooped. Memories swam into her head, of sitting in the sun and holding Megamind's narrow but oh-so-warm hand. A little smile touched her lips as she started to doze off.

A loud buzzing sound woke her. She jumped up, momentarily disoriented, until she spotted her purse. Her cell phone was set to vibrate. Taking a deep breath to slow her startled heart, she selected. "1 New Message." It was from an unfamiliar number, and consisted of five oddly-spaced words.

_did u have fun 2day ?_

Roxanne deleted it. It was probably just one of those spam texts that were sent out to see who was gullible enough to respond to them. She settled back down and grabbed the top file off her table to start working. If she was going to laze around the apartment for the rest of the weekend, she might as well get something done.

A few moments later, her phone buzzed again. Another text. This one said,

_Hope you had fun today. I did. LOL :) –MM_

Roxanne laughed at the closing (he probably had no idea what it meant), and then at herself. The text she'd deleted must have been Megamind experimenting. He was a genius with most technology, so Roxanne felt a touch of justifiably wicked glee on the rare occasions that she knew more about something than he did. Like cell phones. Or maybe social media. The thought of introducing Megamind to Facebook—or, God forbid, online gaming—made her grin. He'd either be bored or obsessed within three seconds.

_I had a great time, _Roxanne texted back. _Looking forward to Fri. –RR._

xxx

Minion strolled back into the main room of the formerly-evil lair to find Megamind staring, zombie-like, at the computer. His jaw was slack, and he was mashing a few keys every once in a while, but didn't look up until Minion cleared his throat.

"Oh, hello Minion," Megamind said cheerfully. "It seems that I got a bit distracted while doing some research." He motioned toward the computer monitor, and Minion bent to see.

"Are those…birds, sir?" He squinted at the little avatars hurtling across the screen.

"Yes! And they're irate! It's a clever little game. You throw them at things, see?" Megamind explained, pointing. "And then you get points."

Minion nodded and smiled, which was what he did whenever his boss was acting crazy. He was _very _used to nodding and smiling.

"Oh, that reminds me," Megamind said, wagging a finger in the air.

Throwing birds at buildings reminded him of something? thought Minion. That couldn't be good.

When it became clear that Minion wasn't going to respond verbally, Megamind continued anyway. "My research! I forgot all about it. I need your help, Minion." He swiveled his black chair back to the computer and began to type furiously.

"Oh?" One eyebrow raised in reluctant curiosity.

"Roxanne suggested that I turn my evil inventions to good purposes," he said, still typing. "But I can't seem to find any suggestions on how to use Tesla coils for helping people." He huffed in frustration.

Minion thought a moment. "Well, they can be used to make music," he suggested.

"I…suppose," Megamind agreed dubiously. "But you know that I'm not so great at musical things."

Having heard his boss sing along to the radio nearly every day for the past twenty-eight years, Minion was inclined to compare Megamind to a post. But he kindly refrained from saying so. Instead, he returned his gaze to the computer monitor, where angry-looking little birds were still flying through the air. "So, where did you find this game?"

Megamind raised his eyebrows loftily and did his best to stare down his nose at Minion while remaining seated. "Online," he said shortly. When the fish didn't reply, Megamind flapped one hand in a dismissive gesture. "Fine, I was looking for second date ideas." A flush of embarrassment crept up his neck.

"And?" Minion prompted.

"Oh, you are such a pill, Minion!" Megamind practically shouted. "No one on The Google could make up their minds, so I just typed in 'angry.' This was on the front page." He slumped in his chair. "Happy now?"

Minion patted him on the shoulder. "Now, now, sir, no need to get upset with me. I'm just trying to take care of you."

"I know, Minion," he said on a sigh. "But it would be helpful if the Internet could figure out whether a second date is supposed to be fun or serious! I mean, come on!" The computer squawked as Megamind glared at it. "I'm supposed to be spontaneous, yet prepared"—he ticked off requirements on his fingers—"and gentlemanly, but bold, and all this is supposed to take place at a place that is the perfect balance between a silent museum and a hard rock concert. This is simply not possible!"

Minion filtered through the past few sentences to focus on the one important phrase. "Wait, did you say _second_ date, sir?" A toothy grin split his face. "That's wonderful!"

"Isn't it?" Megamind said, momentarily forgetting his earlier dilemma. "I'm going to see her again on Friday." He smiled dreamily. Only six more days before he could see her again, hold her hand, maybe even feel the brush of her soft lips…

"Friday?" Minion frowned. "I thought you were meeting with the Mayor on Friday."

Megamind shook his head. "No, no, that's Tuesday. I re-sheduled."

"If you say so," said Minion. "But I still think you shouldn't worry about Ms. Ritchie so much."

"Oh? And why not?" Megamind asked doubtfully. Since when did Minion think he knew more about women than the Still-Handsome ex-Master of All Villainy?

"Because you've already been out with her, like, ten times," said Minion, as if it were obvious.

"Not as _myself._ This is different," Megamind argued. He waved a hand toward the computer. "All these people on the Internet say that the second date is what determines the fate of one's relationship with a woman. It is essential that everything be perfect."

"That's what you said about the first date, sir," Minion reminded him patiently, "and it all worked out just fine."

"Yes, but I want to make sure that it wasn't just a _fluke_, Minion," he said softly, almost uncertainly. "I have to know that it's _me_ she likes, and that this whole thing isn't just—wishful thinking." Unconsciously he rubbed the spot on the back of his wrist where the holo-watch would have rested.

Minion smiled. "I know." He tapped his glass dome thoughtfully. "You know what you need, sir, is an outside perspective."

Megamind's eyes narrowed. "What are you getting at?"

Fins rippled in the aquatic equivalent of a shrug. "I don't know, maybe you could ask someone you've known for a while…"

"Ugh, Minion, I really don't think I could talk to the Warden about this," Megamind said, frowning.

Minion turned upside-down in his bowl in frustration. "No, sir, I didn't mean the Warden."

"Who, then?"

Minion flipped back upright. "I'm getting to that. Metr—ic Man," he corrected himself in the middle of the word, "might know more—"

Megamind snorted, pretending to misunderstand. "'Metric Man,' huh? What, is he the Master of Meter Sticks? King of Kilograms?"

Minion frowned. "Sir, you know what I—"

Megamind interrupted again, grinning. "His nemesis, Standard Lass, performs various 'feets' of daring—"

One massive metal foot clanged against the floor, making Megamind wince. "SIR."

Another pun died on Megamind's lips. "Yeees, Minion?" he said instead, trying to sound meekly attentive.

"I was _saying_," Minion said, one hand on his hip, "that maybe you should ask Music Man for advice."

Megamind clutched at his chest, green eyes round with shock. "Minion!" he squeaked. "How could you even _suggest_ that?"

The fish rolled his eyes. Who was the real drama queen in this relationship, anyway? "I don't have any more experience with this sort of thing than you do, sir. Whereas Met—Music Man has actually been on dates since high school."

"I've been on dates," Megamind argued weakly.

"Kidnappings don't count," Minion continued firmly, "and neither do dates with the holo-watch on. You said yourself that you wanted to start over with Roxanne, so if you really want sound advice..." He trailed off and raised a meaningful eyebrow.

Megamind sagged in defeat. "Alright, Minion, you win. I'll"—he grimaced—"call him in the morning. Ugh, the things I do for love…" That last little word just popped out without any warning, and Megamind felt suddenly glad that Minion didn't seem to have noticed its significance. Thank Evil Heaven.

Megamind turned to leave the room, but before he could take a step he heard a faint, tinny melody. "What's that?" he asked, turning in circles to try and pinpoint the noise.

"Your phone's on your desk, sir," said Minion helpfully.

Sure enough, the little device was buzzing its way across the metal surface. Megamind snatched it before it could vibrate itself off the desk entirely. He flipped it open, and a happy grin spread across his face as he read the message. "Oh! She had a great time, Minion!" he said. "She can't wait until Friday!" His excitement was contagious.

"Oh, that's excellent news," his friend commented, smiling.

Megamind blinked in sudden realization. "This—this is important," he said reverently, cradling the phone to his chest for a moment. "This is the first text she's ever sent me. Well, _me _me, not _Bernard_ me." He looked to his friend again. "What should I say back?" he whispered, worry shining in his eyes.

Minion's eye twitched. Did Megamind _ever_ listen to what he said? Had the whole "ask someone with actual experience" conversation flown completely over that giant blue head? Minion sighed and rubbed the front of his bowl, wishing for patience. "Perhaps some words of agreement are in order, sir," he said, trying his best to be diplomatic. Seeing the nervousness wash away from Megamind's face, relief taking its place, Minion thought that he'd made the right decision. As usual. He was a fantastic fish, after all.

"Ah, yes, of course, right," Megamind muttered, jabbing at the tiny keyboard. "Oh…good…me…too. See…you…then. Smiley face...no, not that symbol...MM. Perfect!" He hit "send" with a triumphant flourish.

Oh boy, thought Minion. Hopefully he wasn't going to read _all_ of his texts out loud, or this would be a long evening.

Reviews always welcomed! :)


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